Chapter 12 #2
Trino likes what he hears. “That means tonight is going to be a strong weekly update?”
“Bet your fuckin’ ass, boss. By the end of the month, you’re going to present your case to the pit-boss and for sure make cap—” Bruno adjusts his glasses. “Whoa, my, ’scuze me, hun. You lost?”
My eyes flick to Trino angrily. He gets the hint.
“Bruno Belly Stunad, Chestnut, this is Misty.” He thumbs toward me. “Picked her up on a recruiting couch today.”
“Ha, ha. This the one?” Bruno winks at me.
“That joke never gets old, Stuny ,” Chestnut says sarcastically, rubbing his arm.
My blood boils. Not only am I a throwaway here, but Trino is a goddamn celestial-level man-whore.
Chill, Capri. Can’t get mad at the man for his past. It’s not like he tried to finger Chestnut in front of you.
“Hi, Misty, nice to meet you.” Chestnut offers her cheek, still holding onto Bruno.
Bruno offers his hand, which I guess is a sign of respect for Trino.
“Bruno runs the books, Chestnut wrangles the girls when there’s an issue. You two, treat her well. I’m taking her.”
Taking me? Is that code for something?
They both smirk in understanding.
“Does she speak?” Bruno asks.
Oh, does she.
“I’d love to know where you got your street name, Bruno.” I grin at him.
To my surprise, he gets giddy at the ask. “Which one? Belly or Stunad?”
“Um, let’s go with the latter?”
He cackles. “Was doing a—uh, a job, and on my way out with some – let’s call them pastries – I got a spurt of vertigo and ran into the wall. Pastries flew everywhere, got a broken nose, and had to be dragged out by my partner in crime. Not my proudest moment.”
Trino hoots. “Then why you smiling?”
“Shit’s funny, boss.” He shrugs.
“Now whenever he’s feeling a bout coming on, I just bounce these in his face to set him straight,” Chestnut says.
The three of them laugh at the crude humor. There’s something endearing about it, in a slime ball Star Dust kind of way.
“So that’s why they keep you in an office now,” I say.
“Whoa. Whoa. I never thought of it that way.” He looks at Trino in shock. “Smart cookie, this one. Hey, Knots , is that why I’m in charge of the books now? The fuck?”
The tone is light, but I can tell Trino is ready to move on.
“Is that all?” he changes the subject.
“Nah, nah. Chestnut needs you for a second… in private. I’ll take Misty for a tour, if that’s alright.”
Trino eyes me, and nods, giving me another sliver of comfort. But when I say sliver, I mean sliver . My hands are definitely getting clammy, and my heart is in my throat. I could’ve done five more years of nerve-wracking law school and still be unprepared for this.
Freakin’ hell.
Bruno offers his arm to me with a smile, and I take it so not to offend. His underarm is emitting heat like a furnace, and up close, I see a few pock marks from some scarred-over pimples. Other than that, his aura is perfectly pleasant.
We stroll to the bar. Every step sinks my heart a little further. Trino is my only sense of comfort, and he’s leaving with another woman with gigantic breasts. We’re supposed to get married tomorrow, I tell him telepathically. This isn’t your bachelor party!
The heck is wrong with me? Why do I feel so jealous?
It’s that orgasm virginity. Has to be.
Bruno presents me to three women huddled around the corner of the bar.
One is a platinum blonde with smaller breasts than me – I don’t know why I’m comparing – but a more shapely bum.
It makes my confidence sink. I thought I had the all-star bum in terms of fitness.
Guess I’m out of my league here. The other two are brunettes, one curly, one wavy. All features manmade like dolls.
“Ladies, ladies. I’d like to introduce you to our latest girl, Misty. I know you’re all dying to give her a warm welcome.”
I can’t tell if Bruno is being sarcastic or not.
He lets go of me to wrap his arms around their waists, waiting for a kiss on the cheek each. “This here is Ruby, Diamond, and Britta.”
Goddammit. Of course the blonde with a better ass than mine is Britta. Welp, that means he was being sarcastic too. Is this like the X-rated version of the Plastics or something? If so, Britta is definitely Regina.
Oh God, and I’m Cady!
“Happy to be here.” I flash my bitchiest smile to combat theirs. Inside though, the terror is worse than first day of freshman class. A bead of sweat trickles down my temple, swerving toward the back of my neck like a good little droplet. Hope to God they didn’t see.
One of the Plastics nods to me. “You can take my spot as the first pole dance of the night. You’ll be alongside Nina and Arora.”
“I think I’ll wait a few rounds to scope out the scene.”
Trying to remain confident is proving tough. They can smell it like lionesses smell a fawn.
“Nonsense,” the other brunette says. “It’s a rite of passage to be in the starlight first thing. Good for the nerves too.”
Thanks, coach.
Britta tilts her head at me with a fake smile, judging me hard.
“Now, now ladies. Be nice to our newest guest. Lookin’ at you, Ruby. If she doesn’t want to go up on stage yet—”
The song changes to something poppy I hardly know, and all the girls on the far side of the bar start cheering. The men surrounding them seem to enjoy their energy too.
Ugh, this is going to be a long night.
Maybe Ruby’s right, breaking the ice will help settle these nerves. I mean, what’s the worst that could happen? I fall on my face and Trino turns me into an escort at his other job?
That’s pretty bad, actually.
My finger twitches. I’d do anything to bite my manicured nail right off right now.
Screw it.
“Alright, I’ll take your spot,” I say.
The slight shock on their faces is not worth it, because my throat runs dry with fear.
Where is Ruby going? She struts toward a podium where an elder man sits guarding the private rooms, and whispers something in his ear.
“So, how long have you been dancing here, Diamond? Britta?”
“I’m a veteran. Three years.” Diamond holds up long-nailed fingers and does a quick single-ladies dance.
“Two divine years. We’re a sisterhood,” Britta says, her voice like airy silk.
“Gentlemen of east Jersey, get ready for our first ladies of the night. Give a very starry welcome to Arora, Nina, and… our newest sexy girl-next-door dancer—Misty!”
My neck muscles tense. Actually, my whole body is seizing right now. Out of my periphery, I glance two dolled up Russian-looking women strutting around the bar, to a cut out that they duck under.
Britta raises her eyebrows at me. “Looks like you’re up.”